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Updated through 2024NTEE A · Arts, Culture & Humanities

Arts, Culture & Humanities nonprofitexecutive pay

Median top-executive pay across 17,106 arts, culture & humanities nonprofits, 2019 – 2024. Each organization is counted once at its most recent filing, using the highest-paid leader reported on IRS Form 990, Schedule J.

Organizations that promote the arts, culture, and the humanities, including performing and visual arts, museums, historical societies, and humanities programs.

Median executive pay
$58,760
The typical arts, culture & humanities nonprofit's highest-paid executive earns $58,760 in total reported compensation.
25th pct
$23k
75th pct
$106k
90th pct
$191k
17,106 organizations · 2019 – 2024
Percentile distribution

Where the middle 50% lands.

Half earn between $23k and $106k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $191k, roughly 3.2 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.

PercentileTotal compMeans
90th$190,896Top 10% of earners
75th$105,94425% earn more than this
50th · median$58,760The typical executive
25th$22,69025% earn less than this
10th$7,10010% of executives earn less than this
By organization size

Bigger budgets, bigger paychecks.

Median executive pay rises with organization revenue. Each band shows the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile of top-executive pay for arts, culture & humanities nonprofits in that revenue range.

Revenue band25thMedian75thOrgs
Under $1M$14k$37,456$67k11,916
$1M – $10M$87k$125,000$180k4,363
$10M – $100M$240k$342,226$522k774
$100M – $500M$569k$823,592$1.4M49
Revenue bands with fewer than 5 organizations are not shown.
Geography

Pay varies by state.

District of Columbia pays $59,352 more than the national median across arts, culture & humanities nonprofits.

By role

Benchmark a specific Arts, Culture & Humanities role

Drill into median pay for individual leadership roles within arts, culture & humanities nonprofits.

Board & trustee pay

Arts, Culture & Humanities board & trustee pay norms

9% of arts, culture & humanities nonprofits pay at least one board member or trustee, with a typical per-person payment of $16,516 across a median board of 4 paid members.

Organizations paying board members
9%
Median board pay
$16,516
Median paid board size
4
By filing type
Form 990: 10%
Form 990-EZ: 7%
Form 990-PF: 9%
Directory

Museums, performing arts organizations, historical societies, media outlets, and other nonprofits focused on arts, culture, and the humanities. Includes visual arts, music, theater, film, and cultural preservation. There are 43,040 arts, culture & humanities organizations in our database with compensation data from IRS Form 990 filings. Use the table below to browse them, or sort by revenue, location, or number of reported executives.

Organizations in Arts, Culture & Humanities

43,040 organizations · Page 842 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Colorado Jazz AmbassadorsCastle RockCO$2k0
THE BRONZEVILLE RENAISSANCE PROJECTChicagoIL$2k0
The Damodaran Foundation IncMontpelierVA$2k0
Half Hollow Hills Music Booster AssociationDix HillsNY$2k0
Samuel F Morse Amateur Radio ClubFair OaksCA$2k0
FEMALE FOUNDERS INSTITUTESacramentoCA$2k0
CREATIVE ARTS COLLECTIVEVallejoCA$2k0
ERNIES GIFT 4 CJDBarboursvilleWV$2k0
STEWART FAMILY FOUNDATION GERALD L FISTER TREASURERFullertonCA$2k0
THE KYLE JEAN-BAPTISTE FOUNDATION INCBrooklynNY$2k0
OSTILLO ART FOUNDATIONAustinTX$2k0
Do ProcessChicagoIL$2k0
Friends of the Sherwood Center For the ArtsSherwoodOR$2k0
AULT AREA HISTORICAL MUSEUMAultCO$2k0
Case Art Fund IncChicagoIL$2k0
MODESTO GATEWAY ROTARY CLUBModestoCA$2k0
NAPASHAKES NAPA VALLEY SHAKESPEARESaint HelenaCA$2k1
Palouse Anthropology IncMoscowID$2k0
The Gevie and JC White Foundation IncInlet BeachFL$2k0
ANCHORSTONE INCStarID$2k0
Black Girls Behind MusicSaint LouisMO$2k0
CHELSEA HISTORICAL SOCIETYChelseaAL$2k0
WV CENTER FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN ARTS & CULTURECharlestonWV$2k0
INTERNATIONAL ARTS FOUNDATION INCNew YorkNY$2k0
ARTISTIC EXPRESSION CENTERAmerican CanyonCA$2k0
CAREGIVERS INCORPORATEDNew YorkNY$2k0
Devil Clefs A CappellaCave CreekAZ$2k0
HAMILTON COMMUNITY HISTORICAL SOCIETYHamiltonMI$2k0
TAIWANESE HAKKA ASSOCIATIONS OF AMERICAHempsteadNY$2k0
WALLED LAKE MUSEUMNoviMI$2k0
MUSIC MIND GAMES INCKensingtonMD$2k0
CSTAR DANCE INCRockvilleMD$2k0
CHICAGO MUSIC INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALChicagoIL$2k0
TIM LOHMEIER AND FRIENDS OF THE DRUMSTICK FOUNDATIONChattanoogaTN$2k0
NOEL AND VALERIE GRIER FOUNDATION INCJamaicaNY$2k0
CENTRAL MUSIC ACADEMYEaganMN$2k0
HEBRON HISTORICAL SOCIETYHebronNH$2k0
IMPRINT FOUNDATIONAlexandriaVA$2k0
LANAYA MUSICAL CONNECTIONSAlbuquerqueNM$2k0
IDAHO SHOTGUN SPORTS MUSEUMBoiseID$2k0
WORLD OF SCOUTING MUSEUM INCAltoonaWI$2k0
FRIENDSHIP FORCE OF BIG CANOE-NORTH GEORGIACantonGA$2k0
RECORDS PRESERVATIONSan DiegoCA$2k0
PETER AND SARAH FINN FAMILY FOUNDATIONHunterNY$2k0
TRUSSVILLE HISTORICAL SOCIETYTrussvilleAL$2k0
MYRIFIELD INSTITUTE FOR COGNITION AND THE ARTSHeathMA$2k0
CAROLINAS WIND ORCHESTRARock HillSC$2k0
HUNGARIA NOSTRA FOUNDATION OF LOS ANGELES INCIdyllwildCA$2k0
HISTORICAL REENACTORS OF SOUTHERN NEVADA DBA Drunken MermaidsLas VegasNV$2k0
MAIN STREET MURALS INCBarstowCA$2k0